Sun Moon Empire, Mingdu.
Although the empire was currently in a state of war, Mingdu's prosperity had not been affected in the slightest. It had even surpassed what it had been during the Soul Master Tournament four years ago.
Naturally, Zhang Lexuan deserved much of the credit for this. Since ascending the throne, Zhang Lexuan had not only quelled rebellions abroad but also carried out a series of domestic reforms. The foremost of these was the development of Mingdu. The first thing she did was wipe out Mingdu's underground forces.
Of Mingdu's three major underground factions—the Xishui Alliance, the Pingfan Alliance, and the Aodu Chamber of Commerce—the Xishui Alliance was directly exterminated. The other two were absorbed, broken up, and assigned to different regions, leaving them unable to become a force again.
Why were they treated differently? The reason was simple: the Holy Spirit Cult stood behind the Xishui Alliance. Xu Tianran had needed the Holy Spirit Cult's strength, but Zhang Lexuan did not.
In fact, when Zhang Lexuan had initially stabilized the Sun Moon Empire, Ye Xishui had approached her in hopes of reaching a partnership. Zhang Lexuan had firmly refused. Humiliated and enraged, Ye Xishui had tried to attack Zhang Lexuan, only to be driven away by Demon Emperor Quan'er. She had not appeared again since.
Because of Ye Xishui, Zhang Lexuan immediately launched a purge, determined to eliminate every Evil Soul Master lurking within the Sun Moon Empire's military and other institutions. It was against this backdrop that the Xishui Alliance was eradicated. The wealth it had amassed in Mingdu over several decades was all swept into Zhang Lexuan's private treasury.
At the same time, most of the Evil Soul Masters within the Sun Moon Empire's military were also eliminated. Only a small number of powerful ones